1. Field of the Invention
The invention is related to the field of communications, and in particular, to communication systems and devices that provide communication bridges under the control of a bridge agent.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A communication device transfers user communications between users. The communication device has a control system and a communication fabric. The communication fabric routes the user communications. The control system processes control information related to the communications to control the communication fabric.
A communication device provides a communication bridge by copying the user communications that are transferred to another user and transferring the copy to a third party. For example, consider that a communication device transfers user communications between User A and User B. The communication device can provide a communication bridge by transferring a copy of the user communications to an agent C. A communication device also provides a communication bridge by transferring third party communications to the users along with the user communications. In the above example, the communication device can provide a communication bridge by transferring agent C communications to User A and User B along with the user communications.
One example of communication bridging occurs when an operator must interrupt an on-going user communication to provide information to a user. For example, an operator may interrupt a voice communication to inform a user of an emergency. Another example of communication bridging occurs when a law enforcement agency directs a communication system to transfer a copy of user communications to them. For example, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) may require a communication system to provide the FBI with a voice tap—a live copy of user voice communications without the knowledge of the users. A tap is a passive one-way bridge, and the term “bridge” includes taps.
At present, bridge control protocols for communication devices are specific to the device manufacturer and are usually proprietary. Unfortunately, communication systems are increasingly comprised of different communication devices from diverse manufacturers. Thus, the communication system must have a complex bridge control system because the diverse array of communication devices use different bridge control protocols, such as SGCP, MGCP, or others.
In the computer field, peripheral devices, such as printers and modems, are connected to a computer. The computer is configured with an operating system and device drivers. The device drivers provide a software interface between the operating system and the peripheral devices. The peripheral devices must be able to interpret the instructions from the device drivers. Typically, the peripheral device manufacturer provides software device drivers that are compatible with their peripheral devices and also with commercial operating systems. In some cases, a peripheral device may automatically transfer their software driver to a common registry for use by any system that needs to control the peripheral device. Unfortunately, this device driver technology has not been effectively applied to provide better control of communication bridging.